After her husband, Ron, poured a bucket of icy water over her head, she realized she'd forgotten to bring a towel outside with her.

"The water was excruciatingly cold," said Benedict, who's part of a support group for a Villa Hills man who has ALS.

"After you get hit with it you kind of stand there frozen because the water's so cold."

Lacking a towel, she then went inside the house where she was hit with a cold blast of air-conditioning.

In any case, it was good fun and for a good cause.

This week she's begun passing the Ice Bucket Challenge along to friends and family. Celebrities including Ethel Kennedy and Justin Timberlake have poured a bucket of ice water over their heads and challenged others to do the same or make a donation to fight ALS within 24 hours.

Maggie Hunt and Allison Hunt, 10, of Petersburg, did the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Their team, Helping Hickory, is in honor her father Bill Simpson, seen in a wheelchair in the video.
Thanks to Maggie Hunt

Saturday, the ALS Association announced it has surpassed $10 million in "Ice Bucket" donations. Specifically, as of Saturday, Aug. 16, the ALS Association has received $11.4 million in donations compared to $1.7 million during the same time period last year (July 29 to Aug. 16). These donations have come from existing donors and 220,255 new donors.

The Kentucky ALS Chapter has had a 403 percent increase in friends engaged on its Facebook page, said Mari Bacon, executive director of the Kentucky ALS Chapter based in Villa Hills.

"The ALS Association Kentucky Chapter is most thrilled about the fact that more people have learned about ALS nationwide since Lou Gehrig was diagnosed. This campaign has increased awareness, driven funds to our association as a whole to further enhance ALS research and advocacy, and the local chapter appreciates the awareness of the assistance we're able to provide ALS patients with here in Kentucky," Bacon said.

"Walkers for our Walk to Defeat events can direct their challenges to the Walk to Defeat ALS customized page. Visit www.alsaky.org to learn more, donate or sign up as a walker." The local address to mail donations is: The ALS Association, 2815 Amsterdam Road, Villa Hills, KY. 41017.